Building inspectors are professionals who can help you make important decisions regarding your new construction, remodeling, or renovation project. By making educated decisions about various aspects of your project, you’ll be better able to make the most out of the building inspection process.
But what do you need to know when it comes to making wise choices regarding the design of your building construction and how it will be inspected during a building inspection? There are two kinds of mistakes during a building inspection: potential and common. Let’s talk about both.
Common Mistakes
The most common building inspection mistakes to avoid are general and common ones. The more common mistakes occur during project inspections where inspectors see one-time problems, regardless of the scope of work, and don’t report them. They may not be able to identify problems in the first place and it’s not their responsibility to identify them. It’s their job to make sure the project is done correctly and by their own standards of excellence.
General inspector errors include overlooking minor issues that were encountered during initial inspections and ignoring clues that a problem may exist. For example, if an area seems to look unkempt and requires some general cleanup or replacement, inspectors may not see it. Inspectors may instead overlook areas that may indicate signs of structural damage. But they won’t see a problem unless an area or component presents some kind of issue that appears to be hidden.
Another common building inspection mistakes to avoid include lack of knowledge and experience. Though inexperienced inspectors may not always notice problems, experienced inspectors are better equipped to spot and identify them. Likewise, neither type of inspector will be able to find everything, but knowledgeable inspectors are better able to narrow down the issues they see.
Another type of common building inspection mistakes to avoid include ignoring relevant information and failing to follow up. Inspectors have many responsibilities and “special reports” must be written for each of them. In addition, inspectors have a responsibility to gather the information that is relevant to their overall responsibilities. They also have to do their part to follow up on the information they collect, sometimes long after the inspection is complete.
Specific Mistakes
In addition to these common building inspection mistakes, there are also some that require expertise. For example, designers and engineers are required to be licensed by the state they are working in. These professionals make it their responsibility to check the plans for errors and flaws before they are submitted to the building department. Engineers and designers also make sure that their plans are written according to the original plan that was provided to them. Designers and engineers are also responsible for ensuring that the materials were evaluated for quality and suitability and that the materials were chosen based on performance.
In addition to these common building inspection mistakes, there are also some that require expertise. For example, designers and engineers are required to be licensed by the state they are working in. These professionals make it their responsibility to check the plans for errors and flaws before they are submitted to the building department.
Checking the Materials
Furthermore, professionals have a responsibility to verify materials’ capabilities, such as stability, strength, and durability, before they are used in a building project. They also need to be knowledgeable about both what goes into building construction and what happens after a project is completed. These are some of the “core competencies” that everyone involved in building projects needs to have.
By now, it should be clear that the two types of mistakes during a building inspection include potential and common. The “potential” mistake is when a building inspector fails to identify an issue in a certain area. The “common” mistake is a type of general and common inspector error when the inspector ignores clues that a problem may exist. While they’re not really mistakes at all, potential and common problems are ignored during inspections, which make them something of a misnomer.
All in all, there are several other types of common building inspection mistakes to avoid as well. These are: deciding on a particular building contractor, requesting an unrealistic work estimates, making assumptions about building codes, failing to ask about their previous inspection findings, not reading entire building plans, failing to check for drywall, carpeting, electrical wiring, finishes, and other potential hazards and making assumptions about building codes.
